According to Manuel and his plethora of pass-catchers, though, those words are said only on occasion. But when they are, typically, Manuel will nod, file the info away into the back of his mind and continue his in-game mission of finding open men to move the ball downfield.

“In order for those guys to be able to communicate with me, it’s a two-way street,” Manuel said. “Definitely I want them to know that I want them to get open. I want them to have the ball just like I have the ball. So if they tell me that, that’s fine with me.”

Whether his receivers have resorted to making casual whispers in Manuel’s ear, or jumping up and down and excitedly waving their arms, they really have little to complain about. Balance is what the Seminoles seek on all phases of their offense, and in the passing game, they have been getting it the most.

Through seven games, already seven Seminoles have more than 10 receptions with another a catch away from the double-digit plateau. Three receivers have more than 25 receptions with a fourth and fifth likely to join them before FSU’s regular season finale against rival Florida.

During the last three games in particular, while FSU has gone on this course-reversing three-game winning streak, the Seminoles have used multiple receivers to handle their heavy offensive lifting. In Saturday’s 34-0 win over North Carolina State, eight different players caught a pass. All but two of them caught more than one. The two who did catch only one, were thrown to at least one other time each.

“(Manuel) mixed the ball around a lot,” FSU coach Jimbo Fisher said. “The tight ends caught it, backs caught it. Different receivers. He was understanding where to go with the football.”

Fisher said Manuel has showcased that understanding all season, and hopes he continues Thursday night when FSU (5-3, 3-2 ACC) travels to Boston College (2-6, 1-4).

It can be easy to forget that Manuel had completed passes to nine different players in the season opener and seemed poised to do much of the same two weeks later when the Seminoles hosted Oklahoma. In the third quarter of that game, he left with a shoulder injury that sidelined him through the first half of the FSU-Wake Forest game two weeks later.

“It gives me a lot of confidence,” Manuel said about his many pass-catching threats. “I feel like if I just give those guys an opportunity to catch the ball and make some plays, they’ll do it.”

“(The option) and the running game … brings the (defensive backs) up and when they come up, we can hit them with the playaction passes long,” Shaw said.

Against N.C. State, Shaw cut into a post route that took him diving across the goal line as Manuel fired a well-timed 20-yard touchdown strike to him.

Despite their successes in the passing game – FSU ranks 12th nationally in passing – the Seminoles have had their critics with respect to the way passes are being distributed.

Perhaps few have been as outspoken as golfing legend Jack Nicklaus, the grandfather of true freshman tight end Nick O’Leary. During last Saturday’s game broadcast on ESPNU, Nicklaus told the on-air crew that he believed Fisher and Manuel needed to get his grandson the ball more often.

“They’ve thrown it to him twice in the last four games,” Nicklaus said. “It’s just … I don’t know.”

When asked about getting the ball in the hands of the former Dwyer standout, Manuel smiled and laughed, saying he had better start listening to the man nicknamed the “Golden Bear.”

“Well, I need to get on it,” Manuel said, flashing a smile. “That’s a legend right there, I don’t want to get him upset. Yeah, Nick’s one of those guys who will tell you, ‘Hey, I was open on that last play.’”

But even while O’Leary and other tight ends and receivers are unafraid to give their quarterback a nudge for pass from time-to-time, it isn’t an indication of a selfish mentality, Shaw said. It’s an indication of their unit-wide competitive spirit.

“We pride ourselves on having a close brotherhood,” Shaw said. “We know that if we don’t get the ball, then it’s going to come sooner or later. We’re all playmakers. We just cheer each other on and move on to the next play.”

Fisher credits that mentality to a newfound discipline that he believes was missing from the Seminoles his first few seasons as offensive coordinator.

“They weren’t playing before. These guys are playing a little better,” Fisher said. “Being more attentive to detail. The guys on the team are holding their feet to the fire. … Part of that is a discipline thing.”

Fisher was FSU’s offensive coordinator under former head coach Bobby Bowden from 2007 until last season, when he took over as head coach.